Gana Prakasam Rajamariyan, hailing from Tamil Nadu, illegally stayed in the Saudi desert for 24 years

He decided to abscond and live illegally after he did not receive his salary

June 15, 2017: After the Saudi government announced a 90 day amnesty period, an extreme case of Gana Prakasam has come into the highlight from Saudi Arabia.

Gana Prakasam Rajamariyan, 52 years old, arrived in Saudi Arabia in 1994. He began work as a farmer in a remote village in Hail province. He was paid a mere salary of 100 Saudi Riyal per month for six month, after which, he was transferred to another employer.

After a few months, Gana Prakasam was again transferred to a third employer. He was not receiving any salary for his labour and he had lost track of his sponsor. He decided to “abscond and live illegally out of compulsion.”

Gana Prakasam spend 24 years in a Saudi desert.

The last time he spoke to his wife was in 2015 before she was admitted to the hospital. She died a year later.

Prakasam has completed all the formalities and is set to return to his native place Kayakumari, where his children and grandchildren eagerly await him. He recalls that his four daughters were very young when he left home. Now on his return, he will be meeting his grandhchildren of the same age.

Many Indians have travelled to Saudi Arabia illegally and are now stranded in the kingdom. Those who have overstayed their Visa are set to return after Crown Prince Muhammad bin Naif announced general amnesty as part of Interior Ministry’s campaign ‘A Nation Without Illegal Expats’.